


To Start A Fire

by katmarajade



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: F/M, Fire, Magic Free Weekend Getaway, Muggle Technology, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-12-09
Updated: 2014-12-09
Packaged: 2018-02-28 19:14:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 886
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2743991
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/katmarajade/pseuds/katmarajade
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It's hard to get Susan away from her work, so Zach plans a romantic weekend getaway.</p>
            </blockquote>





	To Start A Fire

**Author's Note:**

  * For [nightfalltwen](https://archiveofourown.org/users/nightfalltwen/gifts).



> Written for Nightfallwen as part of my annual holiday gift series.

Getting Susan away from the Ministry was difficult enough, and even when she left the building, she inevitably brought piles of parchment along with her. While her dedication and work ethic were both aspects of her personality that Zach personally found very attractive, there was also a fine line between being a hard worker and being a complete workaholic. When Susan started to cross that line, it was up to Zach to intervene.

That was how they found themselves ensconced in a cosy little cabin far away from London. After they'd settled into their little home away from home, Zach busied himself fixing them mugs of spiced cider with healthy splashes of Ogden's finest. When he came back into the sitting room carrying their drinks, he found his girlfriend giving detailed instructions about some work project to a Patronus.

"That is _it_!" he exclaimed, and she looked up, a mix of shock and guilt.

"Zach, come on. It was just one little question. I'm all yours now."

"No. I'm instating a new rule. No magic for the rest of the weekend. We are officially _alone_ and your brown-nosing underlings can survive without your expertise for two bloody days so that you can have an actual break and we can spend some quality time together. I'm tired of feeling like you care more about your job than me."

Susan watched him warily as he took both of their wands and put them in a small trunk near the door. The locking wards were a struggle, but he was reasonably sure he'd managed. When he turned back to his girlfriend, however, she was nowhere to be seen.

"Susan?" he called. When he heard no response, he glanced at the loo, but the door was wide open. The only other place inside the tiny cabin was the bedroom, so, with a bit of curiosity and a little hope, he poked his head inside. Susan was sprawled out on the bed, giving him one of those all-knowing smirks that he loved so much. Eagerly climbing onto the bed with her, Zach began to prove to her just how much he'd missed her.

Nearly two hours later, both of them lay curled under the duvet. Susan stroked her fingers across Zach's face, and he toyed with her long, dark hair, which was currently falling out of its neat plait.

"I didn't even notice the sun going down," Susan mused, glancing out the window where it was already quite dark.

"Is it snowing?" Zach asked, squinting into the darkness.

They both extricated themselves from the bedclothes, shivering when the cool cabin air met their damp skin. Susan pushed the curtains aside to get a better view.

"Wow, it is really coming down out there. That came out of nowhere." She shivered and Zach frowned.

"We'd better get a fire started—it's already getting cold in here and that snow doesn't look like it's going to be slowing down anytime soon."

Susan glanced down at the bedside table and then made a face. "You took our wands, Zach."

"There are plenty of ways to make fire without the use of magic," Zach shot back. Her sceptical look only fuelled his determination. "There was a whole stack of wood and other … fire making type things out there." At least he assumed that's what it all was for, having never actually built a fire in his life.

Pulling on his dressing gown and a pair of microfleece pyjama bottoms and then wool socks for good measure, he walked over to the fireplace with a far greater show of confidence than he really felt. Susan watched as he scanned the materials and then made a show of piling several logs into the opening.

"This would be a lot easier with a simple _Incendio_ , love," she observed, and Zach's jaw immediately tightened.

"I told you. We're going to have a nice, magic-free weekend. I can do this. Now what do you think this does?" Zach pulled out a red and black stick that had a finger hold and buttons on one end and a hole in the other. Turning it back and forth, he glanced back at Susan, who just shrugged.

"Must be a Muggle thing. You did say you found this place through a Muggle agency, didn't you?"

Zach waved the wand authoritatively, but nothing happened.

"Try pressing the buttons," Susan suggested, crouching down next to him.

Gamely, Zach tried one button and then the other with no results. Brow furrowed, he pressed both of them together firmly at the same time, and they both fell backwards in shock when flames shot out the end, nearly lighting Susan's hair on fire, and Zach dropped the device gracelessly, the flames disappearing as soon as it left his hand.

"Well, I guess that makes sense," Susan said in her eerie calm voice, the one she used only when particularly frazzled.

Zach cautiously picked the wand up again, aimed it at the wood in the fireplace, and pressed the button. It took a bit of work, and more kindling than was probably necessary, but finally they managed to get the fire started. Soon the sitting room was cast in the cosy glow, and they were comfortably snuggled under a large, lumpy quilt, watching the snow swirl past the window. 


End file.
